Past, Present, Future? Three shades of blue.

Posted on 16 Jun 2019 @ 5:21pm by Lieutenant Commander Arjin Djinx & Commander Jayla Kij & Lieutenant Jarith Roshe

2,588 words; about a 13 minute read

Mission: Truth and Justice
Location: Talons
Timeline: Backpost

After their adventure with the filaments and the hectic aftermath, Arjin was looking for some down time to relax. He thought about running a holodeck program, but decided against it. He prefered real life conversations for the moment.
So he decided to head to Talons. But he wanted someone to talk to. Not being the best people person, he wondered if he could not just ask someone up front to join him.
He not really wanted someone of his staff, since he did not want the conversation to be about the job.
Trouble was, he did keep to himself too much.
Then an idea hit him. He did know Kij from the past. Maybe the doctor would want to join him. He shrugged. It wouldn't hurt to ask.

He decided on sending a message, instead of disturbing her whilst at work.

"Hello Doctor. I wonder if with all the hectics of the last few days, you also feel the need to relax a bit and have a drink. I'm planning on passing by Talons after alpha shift. If you’re interested in a drink and some catching up time, let me know and maybe we could see each other there. Djinx."

He pushed the send button and hoped for the best.

As it happened, Jayla was lounging at her desk with a cup of coffee when the message came through, so she saw it right away. It was true that Gavara Kij had had a fling with Timor Djinx, but that didn’t mean that Jayla and Arjin couldn’t be friends. She replied with a yes and a promise to meet him there. It was nearly the end of alpha shift now, so she finished reading reports from the nurses, medics, and corpsmen, then headed to Talons.

It was busy, as always. Jayla ordered a rum cocoa and once it was delivered, headed over to a free table to wait for Arjin.

As he entered Talons, Arjin was greeted by a swirl of a crowd. It was as if half of the ship was present. It seemed like everyone needed some relaxation. Everywhere he looked, he saw tables occupied. Almost no spot left to sit. He became anxious at not being able to find a table now he had asked Kij to join him. Only to see she was already there waiting at him, having been able to secure a spot. He waved, then ordered what at one time was the most popular drink on Earth: A Gin and Tonic. He then walked over to meet the good Doctor.

"Hi there Doc. Thanks for accepting the invite."

"Of course," replied Jayla with a warm smile. "I always have time for an old friend. Even if that's an old friend of Kij's and not necessarily Jayla's."

"True. True.", Arjin replied.
He had always felt the warm feelings Djinx emanated around Kij. Warm but complicated looking back how they broke up. He sat down at the table and raised his glass. "Here is to some well deserved R&R.", he said. "I don't know about you, but I'm busted."

“Ugh,” replied Jayla. “Medical was a Zoo! I thought we’d never see the end of it. I hope we don’t run into anything for awhile; I could use some down time just to catch up on reports.”

"Oh please don't talk about reports. I already start to get a headache. Any more and i'll have to go see the doctor.", he joked. "In the zoo.", he added.

"Sure," laughed Jayla. "Put another feline in the mix. Nobody will even notice. Seriously, though, if anybody had told me there was this much desk work involved in being Chief Medical Officer, I'd have turned it down and taken a job in Pediatrics on a Star Base somewhere."

"Pediatrics! And miss all the fun of deep space exploration. ", Djinx exlamed. "It is lovely to see them grow up. But nothing beats the thrill of the unknown." Picking up on Kij's remark he added: "You know some felines work well together in packs."

"That's true," she agreed. "Lions, for instance. And Catians."

Lieutenant Jarith Roshe was tired after assisting in Sickbay the past couple of hours. More than one Counselor was needed and being a Betazoid helped a great deal. When he entered Talons, he sensed the crowd inside before he actually saw it. The noise of clinking glass and conversation filled the room.

Jarith sidled up to the crowded bar and ordered his favorite, a gin and tonic with a hint of fresh lime. Glancing around, he realized there wasn't room to sit. He spotted Arjin with Doctor Kij and wondered if he should just stand there and pretend he didn't see them. They seemed to be deep in their own conversation.

Deciding he couldn't pass up spending time with Djinx, Jarith strolled over to the table. "Mind if I join you?" asked he.

Arjin was so caught up in his conversation with Jayla that he had not paid any attention to his surroundings. Besides he was sitting with his back to the bar. So he was startled when he heard the counselor's voice. Once he had his composure back, he answered. "Of course Counselor. Please do. It seems to be very hectic today at Talons."

Jayla gave Roshe a warm smile. Though she didn't know him well, she didn't at all mind him joining them. After all, Jayla was the friendliest member of the crew, if not the friendliest person in the whole of the history of forever. "Absolutely," she added. "The more the merrier. How has your day been?"

Jarith slid in the booth next to Djinx. "Thanks," he said greatfully, beads of sweat already perspiring on the glass in his hand. To Kij, he replied, "I was kept busy. It's surprising how many folks require a Counselor out here. Doctor Stewart and I were at our wit's end sometimes."

He took a sip of his gin and tonic, savorying every moment. "What have you two been up to? Any gossip I should know about?" In his mind, he was curious what the two would have had in common other than being Trill.

"I... well... not really," Jayla replied, her mind going immediately to Alex. She had no idea why she didn't feel comfortable confirming those particular rumors just yet, but perhaps it was just that the relationship was too new and telling someone would feel like sharing him and she wasn't ready to do that, yet. "How about you?" she finally asked, feeling her cheeks grow hot.

Arjin's heart skipped a beat as the handsome counselor sat close to him. Luckily Kij answered the counselor's question so he could get his flushing cheecks back to normal. Seeing Jayla also had red cheeks made him think there was some gossip she did not want anyone to know. "Yes. How about you?", he managed to copy.

Jarith sighed. Something was going on here, that much was evident. The Trills' blushing cheeks and colored spots were an indication of hiding emotions. Quickly, because the silence between them was deafening, he took a swig of his Gin and Tonic.

Finally clearing his throat, he spoke, "I heard that Ensign Sparks and Lieutenant Starkweather were caught inflagrante in Engineering. I mean, I'm gay, but how embarrassing."

Arjin laughed at what he heard as he clearly noticed it as an attempt to defuse an awkward situation. He raised an eyebrow. "Embarrassing. Coming from a Betazoid, the situation must have been really bad.", he joked.

Jayla giggled, too. "Oh, my goodness," she said. "Is it really so hard to go to your quarters?"

"Probably.", Arjin replied. "You both know about guys and their urges. Don't you."

Jayla nodded. "First and second hand," she replied.

"Don't I know it," quipped Jarith as he winked at Arjin. "In my line of work, you see a lot of it. The things I could tell you...but I've taken an oath."

"As far as those two in Engineering go, I heard some kind of messy lubricant was involved."

Jayla, who had just taken a sip of her drink, nearly spat it all over the table. "I hope it was at least designed for that use," she coughed, "and that they didn't use just any old thing."

Arjin's cheeks flushed crimson again. "Otherwise they will end on a biobed for you to take care of them.", he added towards Jayla.

"It wouldn't be the most outrageous thing I've ever seen," she replied.

"Do tell.", he teased.

"I've had plenty of people come into sick Bay in strange things stuck in certain orifaces," she replied. "Not to mention the people who get stuck together. They usually call someone to their quarters, though."

"I bet as a counselor, you get the most juicy stories of us three. Too bad all that stuff is confidential.", Arjin joked.


Jarith blushed. "There are things I could tell you, naughty boy," said he teasingly.

"Naughty Boy," where did that come from he thought. "Maybe you should not tell, but whisper them," he said.


"So anything special going on in your lives?" he asked both of them.

"My mother is on tour with her sculptures," replied Jarith with a smile. "All nudes, of course. She's in her naked phase."

“I went through that when I was two,” replied Jayla without thinking, then she giggled. “Sorry. That was probably too much information.”

Arjin had a mental picture that he quickly made to vanish. "So you were undressing all your dolls then when you were two," he replied instead. "Preparing for a Starfleet Medical career."

"Well," she giggled, blushing slightly. "Actually, it was myself. My theory is that I wanted to go swimming. We lived by the ocean and since it was a private beach, my parents didn't bother dressing us for swimming until we were a bit older."

"Strange people those Trills", Arjin winked at Kij.

"You can say that again," replied Jayla with a laugh. "Although, I never realized how odd we are until I left home."

Jarith smiled. "For Betazoids, nudity is considered natural. The physical body is a thing of beauty. We go naked to weddings, birthdays and other ceremonies. Funerals are one of the few things we do with our clothes...and work."

Arjin blushed at the thought. "Yes. indeed. let's not forget to bring our clothes to work shall we."
Trying to give the conversation another spin, he added: "So any gossip on actual relations instead?"

Jayla hesitated the barest fraction of a second. "No," she replied finally, feeling herself blush lightly. "I mean, not anything that I've heard."

Jarith sensed her discomfort rather than saw it reflected in her eyes. "No?" he queried. When she remained silent, he continued prodding Kij. "Come on, Doctor. There's something you're not telling us."

Jayla stammered wordlessly for a moment, feeling her face growing hot. Finally, with a sigh, she gave up. "I... I've been seeing someone," she said finally. "It's new, though. You know?"

"Details!" said Jarith, who had been seeing D'Jinx for the past month. You can't just leave us hanging like that, Doctor. I want details such as who is it?"

She almost protested. She really really liked Alex and she wanted it to last. She felt like talking about it would jinx it somehow. But, then she reminded herself that she was not superstitious. With a resigned sigh, she said, "Alex Rylan. One of the medical corpsmen. We knew each other as teenagers. He used to annoy me so much, but he was just trying to be friendly. I once punched him in the face." She grinned sheepishly. "Not my proudest moment, but I was in a really bad place and he'd had the nerve to confess that he loved me. I felt so bad about that for so long, but he understands. He understands!" she repeated. "Can you believe that? Even as an 18-year-old kid, he understood why I punched him in the face and he never held it against me." She shook her head. "I don't deserve him."


Jarith's skills as a Coounselor kicked in. "What makes you think you don't deserve it? Life is full of many wonderful surprises. I, for example, have Arjin." It was the first time one of them admitted this in public. Before now, they had skulked about the ship after hours and kept quiet about their feelings for one another. Jarith knew Arjin was a private man, but he didn't care at the moment.

Arjin was relishing seeing Kij squirm. So she had found someone new. He was glad for her. But he would have to tease her about it first before admidding it. Then suddenly he heard the counselor comment on their sporadic visits to the holodeck or Talons. He was so surprised he almost chocked on his drink. The gin and tonic almost came out through his nose. His head turning as red as a captain's uniform.
And what did he mean by "I have Arjin."? It was not like they had established a relationship yet.

"I mean, I punched him in the face!" Jayla replied. "And he totally doesn't care! I- wait..." she said, brow wrinkling. "You two are... are together? Oh. Oh!" and dawning realization spread across her face. "Oh, that explains so much. Goodness, I'm oblivious sometimes!" She gave them another sheepish grin.

"Explains what?", Arjin managed to peep out between coughs.

Jarith smiled. "Don't apologize. We haven't been very public about how we feel until now." He squeezed Arjin's hand gently. He didn't know how Djinx would feel about this public display of affection.

"Perhaps," he continued, "the four of us could get together for dinner. My treat. I make a mean lasagne."

His first reflex was to jank his hand from under Jarith's . He wasn't ready for this yet. But he managed to hold his nerve and keep his hand in place.

"Lasagna?" repeated Jayla. "I'm down for that. I'll have to ask Alex what he thinks, but odds are good he'll be interested.

Jarith sensed Arjin's discomfort and removed his hand. He smiled at Kij. "Lasagna it is,"he said. "Just let me know when and I'll invite you to my quarters. Same goes for you Djinx, if you can make it."

"Lasagna.", Djinx replied quietly.

"Have you never had it?" asked Jayla with yet another grin. "It's ambrosia."

“Yes, yes. I have.”, Arjin replied.


Jarith smiled a broad smile. "Then it's settled," said he. "Lasagna it is. Mine is very meaty although the meat is synthesized. There's a blend of Italian cheeses with ground beef, pepperoni and sausage and a homemade tomato sauce."

When he saw the counselors enthousiasm, Arjin could not refrain a smile appearing on his face. “Oh oh That means 20 extra laps at the holodeck.”, he added.

Jayla giggled. "Totally worth if for Lasagna," she Said.

"I'll even include homemade garlic bread with parmasean cheese," said Jarith. "And for dessert..." Jarith held his breath in anticipation of Djinx and Kij's reaction. "...Tiramisu."

"Tirawhat?", Arjin asked. Not recognizing the word.


"Tiramisu," repeated Jarith, his dark pupils dancing. "It's an Italian dessert. You never tried it on Earth? It's a delicious thick custard and whipped cream over rum and coffee soaked Lady Fingers which is a dessert in itself."

"I love tiramisu," put in Jayla. "You're going to love it, I promise!"

"Challenge taken.", Arjin added. "Seems you know what Djinx likes."

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